¤Chapter Forty-Two¤

It's six a.m.

It's six a.m.

It's six a.m.

My head pops up from beneath the thick covers to reach for my alarm clock. I didn't anticipate how far my nightstand was and now I'm on the ground.

"Madi?" Owen's sleepy voice calls from above me. His eyes are extra radiant this morning and it both annoys and comforts me. I squint from the bright light in the room. That's right, I think to myself, I forgot that I spent the night at his place instead of mine.

It's been a couple days since the incident and our parents have both gone off on some top secret mission they refuse to tell us about. It's nice to know what they're really up to now that the truth has been revealed but the fact that all four of them have gone together is concerning. How big can that mission be? I know the main point of spies is they don't usually travel in groups because that tends to attract attention.

The day Owen got discharged from the hospital we told both our parents that we plan on enrolling in the Spy Academy next school year. Surprisingly, everyone took his news way better than mine. My guess is Jen and Chris knows I'll look after him so they're not super worried. On the other hand, dad has not stopped pouting ever since that day. He seems really depressed about it but I know he'll eventually accept it —especially since mom's on my side. 

"Isn't it too early to smile at me like that?" I scrunch my face up at him.

"Never" He shakes his head then offers me a hand. I take it and he helps me climb back onto the soft bed.

"Our final exam is today" I mention, hoping to quickly change the subject from my fall.

His head tilts curiously. "Are you worried you'll fail?"

"No," I scoff. "I'm worried it's too soon for you to be moving with your injury"

Mom removed the large bandages from around his head and replaced it with a smaller bandage that he has to change after applying ointment to the area once a day. When his stitches heal a small scar will remain as a permanent reminder of that moment. I don't know how I feel about that yet. I have a few scars myself but they aren't anything I didn't expect or deserve.

"I'm glad you care so much about me" He wraps a hand around my waist and pulls me closer so I'm leaning against the bed frame next to him.

Without meaning to my hand slides through his disheveled hair as I finally ask, "What product do you usually use?"

His brows furrow. "Huh?"

"In your hair," I turn away as my cheeks begin to grow warm. "How does it usually stay in place? Gel?"

He watches me in disbelief for a moment before howling in pure laughter. "How long has this been bothering you?" 

"Forget it."

He grabs my chin so I'm forced to look in his twinkling eyes. "I don't know if you're aware but there's this thing called hairspray and it does wonders for a person's hair"

"Really? Just hairspray?" My surprise helps me graciously ignore the heavy sarcasm in his tone. I reach to touch his hair again. He's not supposed to get his head wet too often so he wasn't able to wash it out last night. "But it's not crispy..."

"Babe, how much of the stuff do you think I use?" He laughs again. The rays seeping through the blinds illuminates his silhouette like an angel.

I cross my arms, feeling stupid. "A lot. I barely see it move or shift out of place."

"What about right now?" He tugs at an untamed strand.

"That's different, you just woke up. Most people are like that in the mornings." My fingers twitch but I resist the urge to touch him some more.

"Fascinating." He mutters under his breath.

"What?" I glare. "I was curious. Just forget it."

He pulls my head so it's resting on his chest. "I've never seen this side of you before it's... cute"

I move back to scowl at his smiling face. "I'm far from cute, trust me"

"Hmm," He places a hand under his chin as a thoughtful gesture. "I'm not so sure about that. What else are you capable of?"

My eyes narrow. "I know what you want and you're not getting it" 

"Oh?" He feigns ignorance. "And what do I want?"

There's no way I'm letting this punk tease me and get away with it. That's my job. I climb over his legs so I'm straddling him and lean in a few inches from his lips. "You want a recreation of the twenty-first"

"The twenty-first?" He asks, confused.

"Owen!" I smack his arm. "You don't remember?"

His eyes widen in panic. "That's not our anniversary... is it?"

"I can't believe you," I shake my head disappointedly. "I'm going to school."

"W-What? Wait!" He stumbles out of bed as I make my way to the bathroom to wash up. I should have left earlier, now I'm going to be late. Not that it bothers me much but since I can't ride my bike, he's driving and Owen's rarely late.

"The twenty-first, baby, is the day we first... last month you and I... together..." I attempt to explain the importance of the date I embarrassingly memorized but eventually give up and slam the door in his face.

Why the hell am I getting flustered?

"Madi," He hesitantly knocks the door. "I didn't know we were celebrating that day especially since that's weeks from now"

I open the door and frown at his amused face. "We're not. I don't even know why I remembered it —it's dumb"

He grabs my hand and pulls me into his warm embrace. "How can you say you're not cute when you're like this?"

I breathe in his intoxicating scent and it calms me while raising my blood pressure at the same time. "Tell anyone about this and—"

"I'm dead," He pats my head and I nuzzle closer. "I know" 

"Good." My voice is muffled by his shirt.

"Madi?" He continues to lightly rub his hand over my hair.

"Hmm?" I shamelessly cling to him like an addict.

"I love you." The rich emotion in his voice makes me pull back to look at his gentle expression. "So much it scares me"

My voice trembles. "Owen I—"

"Shh," He intercepts my words and pull me into another hug. "You don't have to say it back right now. I just want you to know that I'll be here as long as you want me —as long as you need me."

That's what I'm afraid of. My hands tightly grip the back of his shirt. "Why? Why do I need you? Why can't I survive by myself?"

He kisses my forehead. "Even the strongest people need a companion; they get lonely too. We all do. You mean everything to me, Madi." He pauses to brush a loose strand of hair behind my ear. "That's why I want to get strong like Jace so I can watch your back just as much as you watch mine. I don't want to be a burden."

My eyes sting. When did things get so sentimental between us? He always seems to know how to bring out my soft side. A side I try to avoid as much as possible. The last time I spoke to Jace was when he got discharged from the spy hospital. Owen came with me and they spoke privately for a few minutes. I have no idea what they talked about in there and since I'm back to not being able to read Owen, I probably never will.

After their talk, Jace confessed that his parents aren't spies but his grandma was and he found out when she died. They weren't able to retrieve the body but she left him a letter that hinted towards his life being more complex than he thought. He showed it to Todd because they were like brothers at the time.

Todd explained everything about Spy Academy and our parents —everything. Although they are the same age, Todd was a leading figure Jace looked up to. That's why he followed his every command and joined his deviant group without question. And my guess is, that's also the reason Todd never killed Jace even after threatening to do it several times. The poison in the tea was a test to see if he could actually kill his brother. Now that he knows he can, I'm sure things will get more intense from now on.

Jace said he's never been to the academy but Todd's group began training him around two years ago. That's why I felt like he was so similar to me; he's only had one extra year of experience. I'm not sure if he can join the academy now that he's associated with the wrong side but he told me he wants to go back to Todd's group. Apparently he's worried about some girl he left there named Paige.

After I escaped with Owen, some agents found Todd's body lying limp on the ground inside. The medical team left to grab a portable stretcher but he was gone when they rushed back. Two theories are revolving within the spy community now. Either he managed to crawl away to die somewhere else or someone snuck in and saved him when no one was looking.

If he was rescued, it had to be done by that group he joined as a kid —the group out to annihilate spies. Jace was interrogated before he was allowed to leave and as far as I can tell, the official members get branded with a special tattoo which he doesn't have. Everyone else is either hired help or are being tested to see if they're worthy. 

If Jace can go back and save this friend of his, that would be nice but my parents think he'll be punished and forced to stay. This means soon I might have to face Todd again and Jace might be with him. It's pointless worrying about all this stuff now though. I'm still healing and I'm sure everyone else needs to take a moment to regroup before plotting again.

"Okay Romeo," I drag Owen further into the bathroom by his shirt and shut the door behind him. "You've won me over. What's next?"

His cheeks pinken from whatever perverted thought just crossed his mind. "Um... we shower?"

"You sure you're not... unwell?" My eyes rake up his body as I try to hide a smile.

He traps me in a back hug so I can feel him firmly pressed behind me. "Trust me I'm very healthy"

"I guess I'll just have to take your word for it." I try to squirm away but he holds on tight. 

"Oh no you don't." His voice lowers as he leans to whisper seductively in my ear. "I've learned that Madi Fields prefers show more than tell so allow me to demonstrate my abilities"

I manage to turn in his embrace. "Can you work under pressure? There will be a time limit this time"

His response is hasty, "I work best under pressure." 

Instead of a answering, I interlock my fingers behind his neck and pull his lips down to meet mine in a passionate kiss. The warmth radiating off him thaws me into a puddle of liquid as his hands travel carefully across my body. His fingers tentatively graze my skin as if to make sure I'm real and not a hallucination.

I jump up and wrap my legs around his hips. We stumble until my butt rests against the cold sink and his shirt that I borrowed to sleep in finds itself yanked off and thrown on the floor. His lips find their way to my neck, sucking and nibbling while his thumbs fondle the pointy buds on my chest. I'd be lying if I said I know what the future holds but as long as he remains by my side,

This journey of learning new truths and daring against all odds will be worth it.

»THE END«

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! How do you feel?

Rating? 1-5 stars >﹏<

*Please refer to the next chapter (closing statements) for info about future plans and more♥️